Wheeling Sunday register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1882-1934, 1887-12-18

now reposes. In the time of Elizabeth
IL was customary, both in England and
on the continent, for ladies to wear
rings on the thumb, aud several OF
her rings now shown in the British Mu-
scum, from their size, must have been
thumb rings. That the practice OF wear
ing thumb rings extended to the case OF
married ladies and their wedding rings Is
amply attested, not only by allusioEs in
contemporary literature, but by the por-
traits of matrons Of that sge, agreat many,
where the hands are shown, displaying the
wedding ring on the left thumb. In the
time Of Charles IL, the ring seems to
have found Judgment on forefinger, m
times on the middle finger, occasionally
on the third finger also, and, by the time
George l. came to the throne, the third
finger was recognized as the proper place
for il, not universally, however, for Will
lam Jones in his treatise on rings declares
that even then the thumb was the favorite
place for the wedding ring, and gives in
stances of the ring being made of large
size, and, although placed on the third
finger at the ceremony, Immediately after
wards was removed to the thumb.
tradition, which attributes the invention
of this ornament to Tubal Cain, the in
structor of every a~rtiicer in brass and
iron." The barbaric lover, in choosing q
token for his mistress, was doubtless actu-
ated, like the lover of to-day, by the wish
to be kept in remembrance, and the pro-
verbal saying, 'Out of sight out OF mind"
being as as true in savage as in civilized
times, he sought for a memento which
should be always in view, never laid aside,
not in danger Of being lost-which, in
short, should become q part of herself,
mutely reminding her of him, and present
ing a silent remonstrance when her affec.
tions went astTay. For the purposes OF a
loye.gift lie could find nothing more
suitable than the ring. And when the
agonies of courtship finally settled into the
steady troubles Of matrimony, it was not
remarkable that this token of affection
should remain on the finger Of the bride,
or be removed, to be succeeded by another
of a similar kind.
The uses of fhe lingering have been
many and diverse. Originally purely for
ornament, it became a signet for kings and
a warrant for their messengers; to civil Of
fcers it was an emblem Of Office, and to
ecclesiastics An indispensable portion OF
the Episcopal costume. It was once worn
by physicians to prevent contagion and by
patients to cure disease; the timorous wore
it as a charm againnt evil spirits, and the
ambitious chung to it IS q talisman, giving
the wearer success owe his enemies. But
as a love token and a symbol Of marriage
the use Of the ring is so general and OF so
long standing as to dwarf into insignih-
canoe its employment in all other direc-
tons.
At what period it cam into play az a
recognized factor in the marriage cere-
mony it is impossible TO say. The
Hebrews USE it in very early ages, and
probably borrowed the custom from the
Egyptians, among whom the wedding
ling was known-a circle, in the language
Of hieroglyphics, being the symbol of
eternity, and the embodiment of the
circle read by sYmbolizing the hypothetical
duration of welded love. The Greeks
used wedding rings, so did the
Romans, both putting them on the
forefinger-by the way, a practice
followed by the medieval painters, many
of whom represent the Virgins ring on
her forefnger. In the East, where the
popular estimate of q woman is low, the
use of the wedding ring has not been COM
mon, though occasionally the fayorite wife
OF an oriental monarch would receive from
her master a ring as q mark of his favor.
The conclusion, thefore, is safe that, with
increase of respect for the institution Of
marriage, come also increased respect ior
and use Of the ring rs a token of the ALI
anCe.
An English work on etiquette, publish
ed in 1882, says it is for the bride to choose
on which finger the wedding ring shall be
placed. 1t further states that some prefer
the thumb, since it is the strongest and
most important member of the hand;
Others, the index finger, because at its base
lies the mount of Jupiter, indicting the
noble aspirations; Others, the middle finger,
because it is the longest Of the four; and
Others, again, the fourth finger, because a
"veiu proceeds from it to The heart"
The British Apollo" h however, decides
the proper place for the ring to be the
fourth finger, not because IL is nearer the
heart than the Others, but because on it
the ring is less liable to injury. The same
authority prefers the left hand to the right.
The right hand is the emblem Of authority,
the left of submission, and the position of
the ring on the left hand of the bride in
dicates her subsection to her husband. A
curious exception to the ruln placing the
ring on the left hand il, however, seen in
the usage Of the Greek church, which puts
the ring on the right hand.
As the symbol of matrimony, it is not
strange that many of the superstitious fan
cies which have arisen in connection with
the wedding should cluster about the ring.
Dreaming upon a bit Of wedding cake is
common among American young ladies,
but they should be informed that, for the
dreaming to be properly done. the piece Of
cake thus brought into service should be
passed through the wedding ring, for 30 it
is done in Yorkshire, Wales and Brittany,
in which localities the custom has been oh.
served from time immemorial. The Rus
sian peasantrv not only invest the cake
with wonderful qualities by touching il
with the rings used in the ceremony, but
deem that water in which the rings have
been dipped has certain curious beneficial
properties.
In many country districts Of Great
Britain it il believed that a marriage is
not binding on either party unless a ring
is used; hence, curtain rings, the church
KEY, and other substitutes. including a
ring cut from the finger Of the brides
glove, have been mentioned as devices to
meet au emergency, when a ring of the
proper kind could not be procured in time.
In parts Of Ireland, however, there is \
current belief that a ring of gold must be
used, aud jewellers in the country towns
not infrequently hire gold rings to peas
ants, to he returned after the ceremony.
Blessing the ring gives il no small share
of sanctity. and old missals contain ex-
plicit directions as to the manner in which
this ceremony must be carried ont. In the
church service as performed in the villages
of England, the ring is frequently placed
in the missal, the practice being, no doubt,
q relic of the blessing once thought indis-
pensable. The German peasant women
continue to wear the wedding ring of
A. a. L-l-- .H 5000